Mowing-machine.



Patented Nov. 28, |899.

M.. E. HAYES.

MWING MACHINE.

lApplication filed May 12. 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets.--Shaef` l.

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No. 637,932. i 1 Patented Nov. 28, |899. M. E. HAYES.

MOWING MACHINE.

(Application filed May 12, 1899.)

(No M0de|x sheets-sheet 2 FM N Ainr i einen.

MERITT-E. HAYES, OF LEICESTER, NORTH CAROLINA.

MowlNe-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 637,932, dated November 28, 1899.

Application filed May 12,1899. Serial No. 716,552. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom t may concern/f Be it known that I, MERITT E. HAYES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Leicester, in the county of Buncombe and State of North Carolina, have invented a new and useful Mowing-Machine, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in mowing-machines of that class known to the art as forward cut, and its objects are, first, to `provide an improved cutter apparatus in which the parts are combined for operation to requirev less power than can be obtained by ordinary single-stroke mechanism; secondly, to provide means for counterbalancing the weight of the cutter apparatus, so that it will not bear too heavily upon the ground and may be easily adjusted either by hand or foot power to clear obstructions in its path, and, thirdly, to arrange the cutter apparatus and its driving mechanism in a manner which will insure the operation of the sickles at all points in the adjustment or elevation of the cutter apparatus.

With these ends in view the invention consists in the novel combination of elements and in the construction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafterfully described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a mowing-machine constructed in accordance with the principles of my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation through the machine on the plane indicated by the dotted line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a crosssection on the plane indicated by the dotted line 3 3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view of the compensating-spring drum and its adjusting device. Fig. 5 is a detail cross-sectional view through the vcutter apparatus on the plane indicated by the dotted line 5 5 of Fig. l. Fig. 6 is a detail view of one sickle-bar, showing the head-block adapted to be connected to one of the cranks on the cutter-driving shaft.

The same reference-numerals denote like and corresponding parts in each ofthe several figures of the drawings.

The framework 10 of the machine carries an ordinary axle 11, on which are fitted the traction-Wheels 12, one of said wheels adaptn ed to propel a counter-shaf t through suitable drivingxnechanism. Oneelementofthedriving mechanism is a gear 13, which is fast with one of the traction-wheels, and on the rear side of the framework 10 are provided suitable bearings 15,in which the counter-shaft 14 is journaled. One end of this counter-shaft is provided with a spur-gear 16, which meshes directly with the driving-gear 13, and at its other end said countewshaft has a bevel-gear 17, adapted to rotate the cutter-driving shaft. The framework 10 is provided with a hollow bar 18, which lies at right angles to the axle 11 and which furnishes an elongated bearing for the cutter-driving shaft 20, and near its front end this hollow bar 18 of said frame has a circumferential recess or groove 19,adapted to receive the devices by which the cutter apparatus is hung or jointed to the frame.

The cutter'driving shaft 20 extends longitudinally through the hollow bar 18 to have its front and rear ends protrude beyond the extremities of said hollow bar, and at its rear end said shaft 2O is provided with a bevelgear 21, which meshes directly with the bevelgear 17 on the counter-shaft 14, thus operatively connecting the counter-shaft to the cutter-driving shaft. The protruding front i end of said cutter-driving shaft is provided with the spaced eccentrics 22 23, which are set on different centers to project from opposite sides of the axis of the cutter-driving shaft, and in connection with the doublecrank-formed cutterdriving shaft I employ a du pleX-sickle mechanism that is supported by a finger-bar 24, the latter having a jointed or hinged connection with the mower-frame 10, the axis of said hinged connection being concentric with the cutter-driving shaft for the purpose of adjusting the cutter mechanism without throwing the sickle mechanism out of operation to the cutter-driving shaft.

The finger-bar 24 is a single piece of metal provided with upper and lower series ofguardfingers 25 26, and these ngers are fastened to the bar in matching relation. The guardfingers project a suitable distance in front of the finger-bar 24., and in the opposing faces of said fingers are formed the transverse grooves 27, which coincide or register in order to produce a guideway for the sickle-bars 28 29. The sickle-bar 28 is adapted to rest upon the lowerseries of fingers 25,within the grooves thereof, and at one end the sickle-baris provided with a head 32, having a groove 34 to receive the eccentric 22 of the cutter-driving shaft. The other sickle-bar 29 is confined Within the grooves of the guard-fingers 26 and rests upon the lower sickle-bar 28, said sicklebars being confined slidably in the grooves of their respective series of fingers and in slidable relation to each other. At one end the upper sickle-bar is formed or provided with a head 33, having a groove 34 similar to the .groov'ed head of the sickle-bar 28, and the head 33 of the upper sickle-bar 29 is disposed at one side of the head 32 on the lower sicklebar, so that the head 33 may engage with the eccentric 23 of the cutter-driving shaft.

The sicklebars 28 29 are provided with knives or blades 30 3l, respectively, and said knives project from the sickle-bars in order to work in the intervals between the series of guard-fingers, and as the eccentrics are disposed at opposite sides of the center of the cutter-driving shaft they will rotate with the shaft to drive the sickle-bars simultaneously in opposite directions, and thus said knives will operate upon the grain with a draw or shear cut due to the simultaneous reciprocation of the sickle-bars. i

The finger-bar 24 is formed at its inner end with an integral head 35, and the front end of this head is extended or prolonged at one end of the cutter apparatus to form a broad flat shoe or runner 3G, adapted to travel on the ground and to support and guide the inner end of the cutter apparatus.

The grooved end 19 of the hollow bar 18, forming a part of the mower-frame,loosely receives a pivotal sleeve 44, and to this sleeve is firmly clamped a hanger or post 37, which serves to operatively connect the sleeve and the cutter apparatus. The post orhanger 37 is made fast or integral with the head 35 at the inner end of the linger-bar which forms a part of the cutter apparatus, and this post or hanger extends upwardly from the head 35, as shown by Figs. 2 and 3. The upper extremity of said post 37 is fashioned to fit snugly to the lower side of the pivotal sleeve 44, and said post receives a clamp 38, which is fitted to the upper face of the sleeve 44. This clamp is secured firmly to the post or hanger 37 by suitable bolts, as shown by Fig. 3, and thus the post, the hanger, and the sleeve are joined firmly together; but at the same time the clamp may easily be removed to detach the cutter apparatus from the pivotal sleeve. The sleeve 44 is held against endwise displacement by the groove 19 of the hollow arm l8of the mower-frame, and as the finger-bar is clamped firmly to the pivotal sleeve said finger-bar is mounted in a looselyconfined condition on the mover-frame to prevent endwise movement of the parts which form the cutter apparatus. The described construction of means for attaching the finger-bar to the mower-frame provides a hinge orjoint connection between the finger-bar and the framework l0, the axis of said hinge or ployment of means by which the weight of the cutter apparat us is borne partly by a compensating-spring device which is carried by the mowerframe, and this compensatingspring mechanism tends to exert a lifting strain on the cutter apparatus for the purpose of preventing the latter from riding or pressing too heavily on the ground. In the preferred embodiment of this part of my invention I employ a yielding drum 40, which is provided with a chamber 4l, adapted to inclose a convolute spring 42. The framework l0 of the mower is constructed with a fixed arm 43, which is shown by Figs. 2 and 4 as extending in a forwardly and upwardly inclined direction from the axle, and this carries a stub-shaft 45, on which is loosely fitted the compensating-spring drum. Said drum is adapted to turn freely ou the stub-shaft within the limits permitted by the spring 42, and one end of this spring is fixed to the stubshaft, while its other end is attached to the loosely-mounted drum, whereby the spring exerts tension on the drum in a direction to strain operative connections from the said drum to the cutter apparatus for the purpose of normally lifting the cutter apparatus more or less, according tothe adjustment of the drum, through the medium of a hand-lever or afoot-treadle. Thecompensating-spring-controlled drum has one end of a chain or cable 46 attached to a suitable point of its periphery, as shownin Fig. 4, and the opposite end of said chain, cable, or strap is fastened at 48 to a grooved part of the sleeve 44, as shown by Figs. 2l and 4, said sleeve forming the hinged or jointed connection between the nger-bar and the mower-frame.

49 designates the hand-lever, which is forked at one end or provided with the plates 50, and said forked end or plates of the lever are arranged to loosely embrace the drum 40. The forked end or the plates of said lever are fitted loosely on the stub-shaft 45, and they are also fixed to the spring-drum 40,*in order that a movement of the lever on the stub-shaft 45 will turn or rock the drum 40, so as to 'draw on the chain 46, and thereby raise the cutter apparatus. The lever 49 provides a convenient means by which the cutter apparatus may be raised by hand through the medium of the drum, the strap or chain, the sleeve,

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and the post or hanger; but I also contemplate the employment of a foot-treadle,which is fitted on the mower-frame in a position convenient to the operator, and which treadle has linked connections with the compensatingspring drum to rock or turn the latter for the purpose of adjusting the cutter apparatus. In embodying my invention I employ a rockshaft 56, which is shown by Figs. 2 and 4 as arranged in horizontal position on the front side of the machine-axle l1 and adjacent to the hollow arm 1S. One end of this rockshaft is bent or provided with a crank-arm 57, which carries at its upper end the foottreadle 55. The horizontal rock-shaft 56 is journaled in proper bearings 58 on the mowerframe, and at its end oppositeto the arm 57 of the rock-shaft is provided with another crank-arm 59. .A link 60 is pivoted to the free extremity of the crank-arm 59, and said link is extended or carried through a slot- 53 in the fixed inclined arm 43 on the mowerframe. This link is forked or slotted to embrace the spring-drum 40, and the extremity of said link is pivoted, as at 61, to the drum, whereby the link and crank-arm 59 serve to operatively connect the foot-treadle 55 with the compensating-spring drum.

`The spring 42 is connected with the drum to normally impel the latter in a direction which will strain the strap, cable, or chain 46, so as to turn the pivotal sleeve 44 and balance the cutter apparatus. The said lever 49 is made fast with the drum to rock or turn therewith, and the link 60 provides a loose connection between the drum and the rockshaft which carries the treadle, said link playing freely in the slotted arm 53 under the movement of the drum 40. It is evident that the operator may throw the lever 49 in a rearward direction for the purpose of turning the drum to coil the strap or chain 4G on the drum and turn the pivotal sleeve 44 on the hollow arm 18 in a direction to lift the cutter apparatus for the purpose of clearing obstructions in its path. The same end may be attained by operating the foot-treadle 55 to rock the shaft 56 and throw the crank-arm 59 in a rearward direction, thus making the link G9 pull on the drum to rock orturn the latter.

In operation the hand-lever is moved to its extreme forward position by the spring-drum, and the cutter apparatus is sustained yieldably in its proper operative position by said drum. The traction of one wheel 12 propels the counter-shaft to rotate the cutter-driving shaft 20, the eccentrics of which actuate the sickle-bars simultaneously for the blades thereof to sever the grain with a draw or shear cut. The operator may manipulate the handlever or the foot-treadle to operate the springdrum 40 positively for the purpose of raising the cutter apparatus to clear obstructions in its path; but normally the hand-lever and the treadle are free from the restraint, so that the compensating spring exerts its tension on the finger-bar of the cutter apparatus.

Changes in the form, proportion, size, and the minor details of construction within the scope of the appended claims may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is l. In a mowing-machine, the combination of a framework, a hollow arm on the framework, a cutter-driving shaft passed through said arm and having eccentrics disposed on opposite sides of the center of the shaft, a sleeve rotatably mounted upon Vthe arm, a fin ger-bar fixed to said sleeve for rotatable adjustment therewith in a vertical plane concentric with the axisof the cutter-driving shaft, positively-movable sickle-bars confined slidably in the finger-bar and having recessed heads receiving the eccentrics respectively to be driven thereby, a counter-shaft geared to the cutter-d riving shaft, and means connected with said sleeve forsustaining the finger-bar under yieldable tension, the entire cutter apparatus being movable with the sleeve for the eccentrics to actuate the cutter-bars at all points in the adjustment of the cutterapparatus.

2. In a mowing-machine, the combination of a framework, a hollow arm on the framework, a cutter-driving shaft passed through said arm and having eccentrics disposed on opposite sides of the center of the shaft, a sleeve rotatably mounted upon the arm, a finger-bar fixed to said sleeve for rotatable adjustment therewith in a vertical plane concentric with the axis of the cutter-driving shaft, positively-movable sickle-bars confined slidably in the finger-bar and having recessed heads receiving the eccentrics respectively to be driven thereby, a counter-shaft geared to the cutter-driving shaft, and a counterbalancing-spring mechanism carried by the mowerframe and connected with said sleeve at a .point to one side of its center, said mechanism comprising means for increasing the tension of the spring to rotate the sleeve and the cutter apparatus carried thereby.

3. In a mowing-machine, the combination ot' a framework, a hollow arm on the framework, a cutter-driving shaft passed through said arm and having eccentrics disposed on opposite sides of the center of the shaft, a sleeve rotatably mounted upon the arm, a finger-bar fixed to said sleeve for rotatable adjustment therewith in a vertical plane concentric with the axis of the cutter-driving shaft, positively-movable sickle-bars confined slidably in the finger-bar and having recessed heads receiving the eccentrics respectively to be driven thereby, a counter-shaft geared to the cutter -driving shaft, a drum mounted loosely on the mower-frame and having posi- IOO IlO

tive connection with said sleeve, a convolute l spring housed within said drum connected thereto to place the drum under tension and sustain a part of the weight of the cutter apparatus, and a lever in operative relation to said drum for positively turning the latter to rotate the sleeve and lift the cutter apparatus.

4. In a mowing-machine, the combination of a cutter apparatus having a hinged or jointed connection with the mower-frame, a drum mounted loosely on a stub-axle of said mower -frame, a convolute spring housed Within the drum and connected thereto for placing said drum under tension, a chain or iieXible connection attached to the drum and to the hinged connection of the cutter apparatus, a'lever attached to the druin to move therewith, and a pivoted treadle having a linked connection with said drum, substantially as described.

5. In a mowing-machine, a cutter apparatus comprising a llinger-bar, the matching fingers fixed to the nge`r-bar in pairs and having the transverse grooves in their opposing faces arranged to form a guideway, a pair of sickle-bars superposed upon the lower fingers and upon one another and provided With the guides and With the recessed heads, and a cutter-driving shaft having oppositely-disposed eccentrics tted in the heads of the sickle-bars for simultaneously moving the latter in opposite directions, substantially as described.

In testimony that I clairn the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

MERITT E. HAYES.

Witnesses:

GEO. W. YOUNG, T. T. PATTON. 

